Toxins may be generally divided into two groups according to the type of effect that they have on a target cell. In more detail, the first group of toxins kill their natural target cells, and are therefore known as cytotoxic toxin molecules. This group of toxins is exemplified inter alia by plant toxins such as ricin, and abrin, and by bacterial toxins such as diphtheria toxin, and Pseudomonas exotoxin A. Cytotoxic toxins have attracted much interest in the design of “magic bullets” (e.g. immunoconjugates, which comprise a cytotoxic toxin component and an antibody that binds to a specific marker on a target cell) for the treatment of cellular disorders and conditions such as cancer. Cytotoxic toxins typically kill their target cells by inhibiting the cellular process of protein synthesis.
The second group of toxins, which are known as non-cytotoxic toxins, do not (as their name confirms) kill their natural target cells. Non-cytotoxic toxins have attracted much less commercial interest than have their cytotoxic counterparts, and exert their effects on a target cell by inhibiting cellular processes other than protein synthesis. Non-cytotoxic toxins are produced by a variety of plants, and by a variety of microorganisms such as Clostridium sp. and Neisseria sp.
Clostridial neurotoxins are proteins that typically have a molecular mass of the order of 150 kDa. They are produced by various species of bacteria, especially of the genus Clostridium, most importantly C. tetani and several strains of C. botulinum, C. butyricum and C. argentinense. There are at present eight different classes of the clostridial neurotoxin, namely: tetanus toxin, and botulinum neurotoxin in its serotypes A, B, C1, D, E, F and G, and they all share similar structures and modes of action.
Clostridial neurotoxins represent a major group of non-cytotoxic toxin molecules, and are synthesised by the host bacterium as single polypeptides that are modified post-translationally by a proteolytic cleavage event to form two polypeptide chains joined together by a disulphide bond. The two chains are termed the heavy chain (H-chain), which has a molecular mass of approximately 100 kDa, and the light chain (L-chain), which has a molecular mass of approximately 50 kDa.
L-chains possess a protease function (zinc-dependent endopeptidase activity) and exhibit a high substrate specificity for vesicle and/or plasma membrane associated proteins involved in the exocytic process. L-chains from different clostridial species or serotypes may hydrolyse different but specific peptide bonds in one of three substrate proteins, namely synaptobrevin, syntaxin or SNAP-25. These substrates are important components of the neurosecretory machinery.
Neisseria sp., most importantly from the species N. gonorrhoeae, produce functionally similar non-cytotoxic proteases. An example of such a protease is IgA protease (see WO99/58571).
It has been well documented in the art that toxin molecules may be re-targeted to a cell that is not the toxin's natural target cell. When so re-targeted, the modified toxin is capable of binding to a desired target cell and, following subsequent translocation into the cytosol, is capable of exerting its effect on the target cell. Said re-targeting is achieved by replacing the natural Targeting Moiety (TM) of the toxin with a different TM. In this regard, the TM is selected so that it will bind to a desired target cell, and allow subsequent passage of the modified toxin into an endosome within the target cell. The modified toxin also comprises a translocation domain to enable entry of the non-cytotoxic protease into the cell cytosol. The translocation domain can be the natural translocation domain of the toxin or it can be a different translocation domain obtained from a microbial protein with translocation activity.
For example, WO94/21300 describes modified clostridial neurotoxin molecules that are capable of regulating Integral Membrane Protein (IMP) density present at the cell surface of the target cell. The modified neurotoxin molecules are thus capable of controlling cell activity (e.g. glucose uptake) of the target cell. WO96/33273 and WO99/17806 describe modified clostridial neurotoxin molecules that target peripheral sensory afferents. The modified neurotoxin molecules are thus capable of demonstrating an analgesic effect. WO00/10598 describes the preparation of modified clostridial neurotoxin molecules that target mucus hypersecreting cells (or neuronal cells controlling said mucus hypersecreting cells), which modified neurotoxins are capable of inhibiting hypersecretion from said cells. WO01/21213 describes modified clostridial neurotoxin molecules that target a wide range of different types of non-neuronal target cells. The modified molecules are thus capable of preventing secretion from the target cells. Additional publications in the technical field of re-targeted toxin molecules include: WO00/62814; WO00/04926; U.S. Pat. No. 5,773,586; WO93/15766; WO00/61192; and WO99/58571.
The above-mentioned TM replacement may be effected by conventional chemical conjugation techniques, which are well known to a skilled person. In this regard, reference is made to Hermanson, G. T. (1996), Bioconjugate techniques, Academic Press, and to Wong, S. S. (1991), Chemistry of protein conjugation and cross-linking, CRC Press.
Chemical conjugation is, however, often imprecise. For example, following conjugation, a TM may become joined to the remainder of the conjugate at more than one attachment site.
Chemical conjugation is also difficult to control. For example, a TM may become joined to the remainder of the modified toxin at an attachment site on the protease component and/or on the translocation component. This is problematic when attachment to only one of said components (preferably at a single site) is desired for therapeutic efficacy.
Thus, chemical conjugation results in a mixed population of modified toxin molecules, which is undesirable.
As an alternative to chemical conjugation, TM replacement may be effected by recombinant preparation of a single polypeptide fusion protein (see WO98/07864). This technique is based on the in vivo bacterial mechanism by which native clostridial neurotoxin (i.e. holotoxin) is prepared, and results in a fusion protein having the following structural arrangement:NH2-[protease component]-[translocation component]-[TM]-COOH
According to WO98/07864, the TM is placed towards the C-terminal end of the fusion protein. The fusion protein is then activated by treatment with a protease, which cleaves at a site between the protease component and the translocation component. A di-chain protein is thus produced, comprising the protease component as a single polypeptide chain covalently attached (via a disulphide bridge) to another single polypeptide chain containing the translocation component plus TM. Whilst the WO98/07864 methodology follows (in terms of structural arrangement of the fusion protein) the natural expression system of clostridial holotoxin, the present inventors have found that this system may result in the production of certain fusion proteins that have a substantially-reduced binding ability for the intended target cell.
There is therefore a need for an alternative or improved system for constructing a non-cytotoxic fusion protein.